Radio Round the World

Radio Record, Volume IV, Issue 25, 2 January 1931, Unnumbered Page

Radio Round the World

--- Se ars FOP TR CE ee hee PO aM an GERMAN scientist claims. that by: subjecting seeds to wltra-short radio waves he can so accelerate the growth of plants so that ‘only half the usual time is requiréd 408 them to. mature. fo be me 2, 7 * i N ingenious young lady bn is earning her living ‘by: providing, music publishers with daily statistics of the broadcasts of songs, etc. so that their relative popularity may be estimated. .... Ps nay a acc Mee OXE of the largest circuits of theatres in England has been negotiating for the installation in iis theatres of the necessary apparatus for showing wireless news pictures. * =’ ‘ss A NEW system of radio decentralisation isto be installed at a school jn Fort Wayne, U:S.A. It comprises a receiver, an automatic gramophone, a microphone, ‘and individual. loudspeakers for each class. The studio is to be close to the headmaster’s room, and programmes will be broadcast to the whole school simultaneously. ez * * N elaborate "Radio House" is at present under construction in Berlin, and is expected to be ready for occupation early in January. This home of broadcasting is one of the Jargest buildings to be constructed in the capital in recent years. The facade has a frontage of 168 yards. Above the five stories a terraced garden wil be available for meetings and pubiic eoncerts. * * * : TAN American radio listener named Pierce has verification cards from 740 different stations all over the world. He attributes his success to his elaborate earth system, This consisis

y of 15 pipes embedded in: the ground in a circle, 3ft..in diameter, with a leaky motor-car radiator in the centre to keep the ground damp, * * ‘QNE thousand radio receivers, .ad- > judged obgolete, went up in flames at Philadelphia: recently. It was. felt that people owning old receivers couid not appreciate radio to the fullest extent; and consequently sales were adversely ‘affected. To counteract this, they were invited to bring their obsolete sets to the bonfire, and receive generous ‘trade-in allowances on new receivers. Ld * = AFTER six years of experiment, broadcast reception on express trains of the Paris-Orleans railway has been abandoned. It is reported that the background of atmospheric disturbances and the high level of other extraneous noises completely spoilt reception. Radio engineers attribute the failure to lack of power from the broadcasting stations. a x » MoORE than two thousand schools in ™ England are now equipped with radio for listening-in to the special etneational broadcasts arranged by the B.B.0. , .

N attempt is being made in America to ‘preserve records. of event a broadcasis, particularly those oftorical interest. It is doubtful the stheme will succeed, for the broadeasting authorities in London. recently destroyed two hundred similar records because they .were considered useless. for any possible rebroadcast. ‘ a "THAT the aurora borealis induces a ‘kind of tempdérary ‘paralysis on the higher frequencies was affirmed at recent meeting of the French Academy of Science. Reports wére produced showing that on a particular night in September the "northern lights" gravely affected 30-metre communications on the Paris-New York service, necessitating a change-over to 17,090 metres. RRA

= PLEO EE CLEP UP Gn att S00 0D at LUO er TD gd A lM TTLE difficulty has arisen. be*tween English and French radio circles owing to the disapproval expressed by certain members of the Church in JEngland, against ‘the frivolous nature of the programmes broadcast by Radio Paris on Sunday. France considers that this attitude is an unwarranted intrusion upon. her own affairs, and certain commercial housés are complaining against loss. ofrevenue on certain English products which they advertise. e 5 * : , A NEW wireless receiving set hag been specially construeted for installation in the Science Museum at South Kensington, London. Elaborate precautions have been made for fhe safety of visitors, for the voltage of the final stage is 1000 volts-or nearly five times that of the normal power supply from the electric mains. Only the local twin-wave transmissions are received by this set, for the object.of the receiver is to establish a standard of distortionless reception. LY

AN American. has ‘invented an alied edly infallible method of recognis: ing false cheques and those that have been altered. Bankers will use 4 special paper and ink, or both at the same time. These will contain a very minute quantity of a -special chemical product which -will not alter the appearance of the cheque. Upon presentation the banker’ will subject cheques to a small ultra-violet ray ‘plant, and the action of-these rays aipon the paper, will-enable-the cashier to determine if the cheque is false or has. been altered in any way. * = = f ceo wireless telephone link between India and Great Britain is practically ready, anid plans are now being made for the opening of the li tween Great Brifain and -South 4 in the near future. . This will/y that a London subscriber Swill‘ ha to speak by telephone direct to Cape Town and Calcutta, as well as to Sydney and Montreal. Australian, and in the near: future’ New "Zealand, telephone subscribers; will be able to communicate via the Hnglish shortwave station with. subscribers in India, Canada, or South Africa,: * a * A FRENCH magazine has this amusing piece of news:-‘Listeners’ Opinions and Visions of an Announc-er-‘Oh! he is an ass. He gets on my nerves! He has a voice full of feeling. When I listen to him I want to box his ears! He must be a charming man. What an unutterable poseur! I picture him as being tall, dark and clean-shaven. I bet he is rather fat with a wart on his nose e.. and whiskers!" Human nature being what it is, it is safe to that some such remarks have been passed about announcers cousiderably nearer home. EJ =p x N interesting analysis was recently made by the British Broadcast« ing Corporation of the letters received hy them during 1929 complaining of electrical interference with radio reception. Expressed as percentages, the figures are as ‘follow:-WMotors driving machine tools, 23.09; accumulator charging plant, 14.12; refrigerating plant, 10,01; generating plant, mains, ete, 9.5; overhead telephone and power ‘lines, 6.29; cinemas, 6.1; flashing signs, 4.96; H.I’, medical apparatus, 1.71; miscellaneous,. 2.573 une identified’ causes, 21. 65. ¢ "THE Téchnical of Ca} nia is about to acquire a ray valve which is more than 4 high and over 18in. in_diamet Institute of’ Radio Research has sought to eniploy X-ray of more than volts for a long time. With © 40,000 it: was hoped to produce. rays equal in strength to that of radium, but researches. were held up for want of a sufficiently: strong valve. The Xrays produced with the new valve pass through a piece of lead 2in. thick. If the valve gives the results hoped of it, a new era "will be opened up in the medical world and a profound change will take place in the price of radium which at.the present time is almost fabulous and the monopoly of ty ‘one or two companies.